Another day, another restock - and today is a big day for those on the hunt for one of the new consoles from Microsoft and Sony. Walmart has confirmed that it will be restocking both the Xbox Series X and the PlayStation 5 today, along with their less-expensive alternatives, the Xbox Series S and the PlayStation 5 Digital Edition.
Sometimes the first glimpse we get at what future products might look like comes in the form of art from patent drawings. The art seen in patents certainly doesn't always indicate what the final product will look like, but sometimes it does. A new patent application from Sony has been published with some interesting artwork that shows a controller shaped exactly like a banana.
There's an LED gaming projector out in the world now called the BenQ X1300i, and it's made for all SORTS of devices. The BenQ X1300i has a whole bunch of ports, including X1 HDMI2.0b, HDCP2.2, another X1 HDMI2.0b, HDCP2.2 (with support for Audio Return), X1 (5V/2.5A Power, Service) USB Type-A, one RS232 (DB-9pin), a pair of audio-out ports, and a "hidden space for Android TV dongle." This is just about the most intense "gaming projector" ever made.
Starting this week, PlayStation Play At Home begins on March 1, 2021, and with it, free game drops aplenty. As noted by Sony Interactive Entertainment CEO Jim Ryan in late February, the Play At Home initiative will carry the good times forward into the future thanks in part to the bad times delivered by the COVID-19 pandemic. Here in March 2021, this means we're getting Ratchet & Clank, the game released as a re-imagining of the original Ratchet & Clank.
Sony revealed today that some big changes are coming to the PlayStation Store later this year. Nothing will change about how you buy games through the PlayStation Store, but this summer, you'll lose the option to purchase movies and TV shows through it. That goes for rentals too, so it seems that Sony is making a clean break from movies and TV shows altogether.
The PlayStation 5 is an impressive console, and a lot of that impressiveness stems from the machine's DualSense controller. With haptic feedback, 3D audio, and adaptive triggers, the DualSense controller definitely feels like a step up from previous generations, and PS5 games that support all of those features certainly have the potential to be more immersive as a result. Unfortunately, when Final Fantasy VII Remake gets a PS5 upgrade later this year, it isn't going to support all of the PS5's big features.
A number of PlayStation owners reported issues playing certain games starting on Friday. Soon after the reports started rolling in, Sony updated its PlayStation Network status to indicate that it is experiencing issues in its 'games and social' category -- an issue that has persisted through Saturday and into Sunday with no clear relief in sight.
Lately, there have been some rumors have been making the rounds which claim that Sony may turn on the PlayStation 5's M.2 expansion slot through a firmware update sometime this summer. That is probably refreshing news to any actual or would-be PlayStation 5 owners out there, because if there's one thing the console needs, it's more storage. After leaving a console generation where 1TB of internal storage proved to be too little for many gamers, the PlayStation 5 ships with a rather paltry 825GB SSD, which is limited to 667GB of usable space.
Yesterday, Sony revealed that Final Fantasy VII Remake will be getting an upgrade on PS5 later this year. That comes as little surprise - Final Fantasy VII Remake was one of the biggest PS4 games in 2020, and considering that the remake isn't even complete yet, we'll certainly see its follow up on the PlayStation 5. Following yesterday's announcement is the reveal that Final Fantasy VII Remake will be the headliner game in what appears to be a very strong March for PlayStation Plus.
If you're looking for a PlayStation 5, your best bet today could be Best Buy. The retailer has restocked the hard-to-find console, and this time around, regular customers might actually be able to get one. That's because Best Buy is restocking the console in waves until its available stock sells out, so the watchful will definitely come out ahead here.
Sony's PlayStation 5 has been on the market for a while now, but it's still extremely difficult to find in stores. Sony has been unable to build enough consoles to keep up with demand. Scalpers gobbling up available stock have made it difficult for gamers to get their hands on the console. However, one of the biggest challenges for those who do have a PlayStation 5 is the size of modern games compared to the storage inside the game console from the factory.
PlayStation 5 owners will be able to grab an enhanced version of Crash Bandicoot 4: It's About Time starting in March -- and Sony has just revealed exactly what they can expect. The game upgrades, including DualSense controller support, were detailed during Sony's State of Play broadcast today.